Carbureter.



H.IB. FORD. CAHBURETER. APPLICATION FILED OCT. 24, 1908- RENEWED FEB. 2.9, 1916 Patented Apr. 4, 1916, 4 A

QW 1mm-aco: 66%@ Q/Ww HENRY B. FOR-D, ,0F ELY'RIA, OHIO.

CAB-BURNER. i

mimic.

. Specification of Letters Patent.

refaite@ Av1-les 1916- Appncation inea october 24, 190s. serial No. 459,433.. Renewed February 29, 191s. "seriar N'asraei.

` l To all whom# may Concertar@ carbofnjapor for use in internal combustion "eI/glrnes, and consists in, a carbureter vvherein loil or mixtures of oil, or other heavyhydroearbons may be vapor-ized andconi-y mingled with air. y

' yThe process consists broadly in leading to a mixing chamber a predetermined amount of liquid hydrocarbon preheated to a point Where -its vapor tension is substantially equal that of gasolene vapor at 60 de grees viz the tension at which gasolene enurnalyadnrit'ted to the carbureter (oi 'plosion chamber. in the absence of a carbureter) in gasolene engines, and there mixing said hydrocarbon Yin,` the form of a heated liquid spray,.vvith air, whereupon said hydrocarbon is vaporized and ivith the air forms an explosive mixture adapted to Abe utilized in an explosion engine in precisely the same way that an .explosive mixn ture comprising .gasolene is customarily employed. f

The apparatus embodies the combination in a carbureter having a mixing chamber provided vvith an air inlet, of means for heating `a liquid hydrocarbon heavier Ithan gasolene, and means for regulating the admission of said heated liquid hydrocarbon into' said mixing chamber; also the various f p combinations more.particularly pointed out 40 in the claims. f

In the accompanying drawings-Figure l is a side elevation ot' my carbureter, show-B ing the heating vessel in vertical section. Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectlon on `the line 2, 2,

of Figs. l and 4. Fig. 3 is atop vievv.

Fig. 4 is a vertical section on the line 4, 4t, of Fig. 8. Fig. 5 is a section on the line 5, 5, of Fig. 4. Fig. G is a section on :the line 6, 6, ofFig. 4. Fig. 7 is a section on the 5@ line T. T, of Fig. 3, and Fig. 8 is a section, on

the line 8, 8, of-Fig. 3. The sections are viewed in thedir'ection of the arrows.

Similar numbers and letters of reference indicate-"like parts. f

Afjk The shell of the device is formed preferi ably in tWo parts, A and, B, The part-A i has a cylindrical chamber y9,1'arovided with a. threaded inlet connection l0, anda threaded outlet connection l1. To one of these connections is to be attached a pipe-leading from the exhaust of the internal combustion engine, vvhich receives its gas `from-thecarbureter. To the other connectio'nistofbe attached the pipe leadingfto atmosphere, or

to the usual exhaust mutller.-`

The lovver portion of-thepart B `passes through an opening in' the bottom o f ychamber 9 and is exteriorly threaded to-receivefa nut 1Q, by 'means of which the upper shouldered portion yof said part iis-brought tightly dovvn upon the upper rimof part A, so lthat in this Way the two parts 'of the shell are detachably secured together.' I

Inthe loiv'er portionof partB is al Ver-V tical cylindrical chamber C, closed v'at the bottom by a flanged screvvplug In thischamber is a cylindrical -float D'rom which depends a guide rod 14' entering a' vertical tubular opening in plug 13.* 'Extending upvvardly from float D is arod E which is shouldered, so that 'it' forms a yalv'e which is seated in the lower vendgot a'vertical passage, which communicates'Witlrahorizontal passage `15 receiving a pipe ,Gr'vvhich is to lead to a source of kerosene orfother-suitable oil, the supply of which 'oil iscontrolled by a faucet valve at g. The functioniof the ioat D is to regulateth'e quantity'of oil entering chamber C, so as to keep. said oil at a constant level. This'it'does by' closing the valve E when it is sufficiently 'raised'by the oil accumulated in saidchamber'xj In order to prevent the valve E lfrom sticking', I pro vide a rod d, which extends upthrough a fixed sleeve e, and after passing through the top of part B, is headed andy provided vwith a helical spring f,4 Which'normally keepsv said rod in raised position," or retract-.s thereto after said rod has been pushed'down to depress said `float', and so open valve It will also be noted (FifglV that sleeve e` is openV at. the top to atmospheresothat the chamber.y is maintained "at atmospheric pressure even thoughlfthe oil ,therein should become heated to such an ,QXlell llvsfto tend to raise the pressure in 'thefchamber-the `effect ofy which Wouldbeltoprevfent,,the iovvk 'idjcha'mof oil through the passage ,'lmto v ber. y" y, n Onthe sideof chambenQ,isfjfoijined an offset 16., in which is secured one end of a @Oiled Pipe Ffwhich is aaundyavldthe .los

vas

exterior of part B Within chamber 9, and terminates in a side opening formed in a projection 17 on the opposite side, of said part, from that on which offset 16 is located. As here shown, coil F makes one and a half turns.' The length of the coil F must be varied to suit the particular oil employed and must be determined by experiment. Thus obviously for crude oil or a heavytar oil it must necessarily be longer than for kerosene. In any case the length must be such as to raise temperature of the oil used to a point where its vapor tension corresponds substantially to that of gasolene at about 60 degrees. If raised higher than this the oil becomes coked and the deposit in the coil rapidly chokes the latter and lrenders the apparatus useless. In the projection. 17 and adjacent solid portion of part B, is a horizontal passage 18, with which coil F communicates. At its outer end said passage is closed by a removable screw 19. At its inner end it is intersected by an enlarged threaded opening which receivesthe valve seat 20: said valve seat has a vertical passage flared at its upper end, and there receives the needle valve K, the stem 21 of Which is threaded at its upper end to pass through a bushing 22 in the top of part B, so that by turning stem 21, the needle valve K can be opened or closed to the desired extent.

On each side of the portion of part B, in which the Valve seat 20 is located, is a vertical passage H, Fig. 2. These passages open into the atmosphere at their lower ends 24, Fig. 4, and at their upper ends into the mixing chamber I in part'B, and through them enters into said chamber atmospheric air which is to be mixed with-the hydrocarbon, to form the explosive mixture to be used in the engine. In coming through said passages. said airv becomes somewhat, but not materially' heated before entering the mixing chamber.

wWhile it is advantageoif to somewhat. Warm the air admitted to the mixing chamber, it is a disadvantage to heat it to a high temperature since in its consequently ex-I panded condition. a. considerably less quantity may enter the chamber and a corresponding decrease'n the amount of oxygen results-thereby lessening by so much the combustibility of the charge. A large supply of oxygen is necessary-and for this reason the air passages H are short and the air is not heated to a high temperature. Furthermore being in proximity1 to the oil chamber C the inflowing air tends to prevent the temperature of the oil in this chamber from becoming so-high as to coke and thus choke the outlet to pipe F. j j

Formed in part B. and parallel to passage 15, is another passage 25 communicates at its outer end with the oil which a pipe part B. IVhen the faucet valve 'y' andthe needle valve N are opened, gasolene can enter the mixing chamberI and flow over the upper vsurface of the partition in which the passages 15 and 25 are formed.

In the top of part'B is an opening threadved to receive a spider 28, centrally disposed in which is a sleeve 29 which receives a disk valve L, closing -said opening and bearing against the under side of said spider. Said valve is held to its seat by the stem 30'carrying a disk 3l, between Which disk and valve L is interposed the helical spring 32. 'The upper end of stem 30 extending above sleeve 29 is threaded'to receive a nut 33, by means of which the. spring pressure on the valve L may be regulated. The function of valve L is Vto admit an additional supply of atmospheric air toy the mixing chamber, under conditions hereinafter set forth.

On one side of the mixing chamber I is the outlet duct 31, providedlwith the pivoted valve M,.operated by handle 35.

The operation of the entire apparatus is as follows: Faucet valve g, in the oil pipe G,

.is opened to admitoil into chamber C. This oil fills the coil F and rises in chamber C until 1t reaches a predetermined level, when the float D clcses valve E ai l so prevents i the entrance of a further siioply. Faucet valve j, in the gasolene pipe J, isalso opened, and the needle valve is raised to permit a small amount of gasolene t0 flow, as described, into the mixing chamber I. The engine is now cranked, or otherwise started by hand. the valve M being adjusted permanentlvv toa desired opening. The suction 0f the engine then draws from the mixing chamber I the vapor of the gasolene, just admitted, mixed with air entering through the passages H. This mixture, being ignited in the engine cylinder in the usual way, starts the engine into automatic operation and establishes the flow of hot exhaust gasthrough the chamber 9. This heats the cil in the coil F and float chamber C. Then a temperature is reached at which the oil has acquired a vapor tension substantially equal to that of gasolene at 60 degrees, or in other wordshas reached a temperature at which it flashes. say 150o for. ordinary kerosene, the gasolene supply is shutolf completely. 4The hct oil. sucked in bv the engine. escapes in the form of spray past the needle valve K, which has already been adjusted to a predetermined opening, meeting meanwhile the air entering by passages H. The oil sprays into said chamber as a hot liquid and mingling with the air entering through passages H, vaporizes'and forms therewith the explosive mixture whichl thenceforvvard alone supplies the lene at all, since the oil may' already be at a sufficient-temperature to vaporize when admitted into the mixing chamber. It is, therefore, to be especially noted, that the gasolenel is used in this apparatus as nothing buta priming. It need not be used at all if the oil is already hot. And, when it is used, a very small quantity-a teaspoonful or two-usuallysuffices. Hence,vit is not necessary in an automobile, for-instance, to carry more than perhaps a few ounces-of this highly inflammable and dangerous hydrocarbon. v A

I desire tocall particular attention to the way I use the oil. It is not brought to the boiling point, but simply to the very much lower temperature atavhich it evaporates vunder the pressure existing in the mixing chamber. And this temperature, which may be. but 150O Fahr., requires no higher heating of any part of the contrivance.- Furthermore, I do not regulate a {io-W of oil vapor into the mixing chamber, but a flow of liquid oil which does not become vapor until after it passes the valve K and gets into the chamber I.A The great trouble in all previous efforts, Within my knowledge, to utilize the heavy/hydrocarbon in explosive mixtures has been found in the endeavor to regulate a current of gas flowing into the mixing chamber and produced from hydrocarbon previously vaporized 'somewhere else. yFurthermore, the gas passages become successively highly heated and a deposit or lcoking takes place in them which stops them up. It is practically impossible properly to regulate that gas flow. It is perfectly possible and easy to regulate aliquid flow, for the amount of liquid escaping past the'valve per given time then follows ordinary hydraulic laws, and depends chiefly on the extent of valve f opening. From each drop of oil passing the regulating valve K into the mixing cham- 7 ber \I,a precisely definite amount of gas will be' evolved. Regulate, therefore. the hot oil passing the valve K, and the amount of y vapor resulting from .the oil after it .has passed that valve' Willalso be regulated. Hence, it is possible to make explosive mixtures containing the heavy hydrocarbon not only in definite proportions, but those proportions which insure the best combustion in the engine. 4 Aj- I have practically. usedin the', engine of an automobile, in ordinary employment,

kerosene land mixtures of kerosene vvith vfuel oil. In the latter instance, I have successi' fully utilized a mixture of 50 perl cent. 'kerosene oil at 45 Baume and f5() percent! fuel vvoil at 34 Baume, and it istentirelyfpracticable by my apparatus and'method to burn fuel oil alone'and Without admixture. Gen-f" erally, it may be lstated that the'heat of the oil Will be determined'by the length given l to coil F, and forordinary kerosene 'oil this length should be so adjusted as to ,heat lsaid oil to aboutlOo Fahr., as already stated. For alcohol, a shortercoil' will be used, andfor oils heavier than kerosene, a longer one.

The function of the' air valve L, atthe l top of casing B, is automatically to produce an additional air supply when called for by increased engine suction, which also increases the volume of oil spray.

I claimf 1. A carbureter for heavy hydrocarbon, comprising a mixing chamber', a heating chamber surrounding the lower portion of said mixing chamber and provided with an inlet port for the exhaust from an explosion engine and a discharge port, in combination With a float chamber for the hydrocar' bon located inthe heating chamber and a `f short external coil arranged within the heatingy chamber and leading from said float chamber to the lower portion of the mixing chamber, substantially as described.

2. A. carbureter for heavy hydrocarbon,4 comprising a mixing chamber, a heating chamber surrounding the lower portion of said mixing chamber and provided with an inlet port for the exhaust froman explosion engine and a discharge port. in combination with a floatchamber for the h vdrocarbonlocated in the heating chamber and a -shc' external coil arranged Within the heat-ing chamber and leading from said fio'atqchamber to the lower portion of the mixingr chamber, together with an air inlet passage adjacent the float chamber and opening to the lower portion of the mixing chamber,l substantially as described.

3. A carbureter for heavy hydrocarbon, comprising a mixing chamber',y a heating chamber surrounding the lo\ver,portion of. said mixing chamber and provided with an inlet port for the exhaust from an explosion engine and a discharge port, in combination with a {ioat chamber for the hydrocarbon located in the heating chamber and a short external coil arranged Within the heating chamber and leading from said ioat chamber to the lower portion of the mixing chamber, together with an air inlet passage adjacent the oat chamber and opening to the lower portion of the mixing chamber, and a supplemental air inlet opening to the upper portion of said mixing chamber and valve means for regulating the admission of air therethrough substantiallv as described.

l. A carbureter for heavy hydrocarbon, comprising a mixing chamber, a heating chamber surrounding the lower portion ot' said mixing chamber and provided with an inletport for the exhaust from an explosion engine and a discharge port, in combiation with a float chamber for the h vv'drocarbon-located in the heating chamber and a short external coil arranged within the heating chamber and leading from said float chamber to the loivervportion of the mixing chamber, said fioat chamber having a pasage opening to the exterior of the carbureter and serving to maintain atmospheric pressure within said float chamber, substantially as described.

5. A carbureter for heavy hydrocarbon, comprising a mixing chamber, a heating chamber surrounding the lower portion of said mixing chamber and provided with an inlet port for the exhaust from an explosion engine and a discharge port, in combination with a float chamber for the hydrocarbon located in the heating chamber and a short external coil arranged within the heating chamber and leading from said 'float chamber to the lower portion of the mixi'ng chamber, said float chamber having a passage opening to the exterior of the carbureter and serving to maintain atmospheric pressure within said float chamber, together with a rod extending through said passage for freeing the iioat valve, substantially as described.

In testimon7 ivhereot1 I have affixed my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

HENRY B. FORD.

lVitnesses z 4 ELIZABETH 'oTHGERY, T. M. Srizvnxs. 

